Victoria Bull

Hemel Hempstead’s fire crews are launching a Christmas campaign in a last-ditch effort to ensure people remain safe during the festive period.

Firefighters at the Queensway station have joined forces with local venues and businesses to dissuade festive revellers from going behind the wheel after enjoying a celebratory drink.

Hemel Hempstead Football Club and the town’s Greenacres taverns in Bennetts End and Grovehill have agreed to display the emergency service’s bespoke safety posters and specially-designed beer mats encouraging punters to think twice before drink-driving.

Additionally, anyone who books a cab home from those nightspots using the Hemel Hempstead-based Millennium 247 taxi firm – and shows their beer mat – can enjoy a 10% discount on their safe ride home.

The campaign highlights the fact that last year, there were 25 fatalities and more than 2,300 people injured on the roads throughout Herts, with those in the 18 to 24 category most at risk on the county’s highways.

It also sends home the hard-hitting message that being caught with under the influence of drink or drugs can result in a £5,000 fine, imprisonment, a licence ban and loss of a job.

For more information on the taxi discount deal, which is expected to run for the whole holiday period until New Year’s Day, contact Millennium 247 Cabs on 01442 247247.